Morningstar
by thebestofall
Summary: Perseus, son of Kronos and Rhea. Banned from Olympus and forced to rule Hell. Now Kronos has broken loose and he has to team up with his most hated brother to defeat the King of the Titans. (Rewrite of The Devil)
1. Prologue

**Before y'all read the story, I just wanted to mention one thing. There's a slight change to Greek Mythology in this story. Unlike my other story, everyone knows who Perseus is. Stuff about him will be there in Greek texts and so on. So yeah, people will know his name as much as they know Zeus's name.**

 **.**

* * *

( _The Palace of Zeus & Hera_)

The King of the Gods was beyond scared. There was no doubt now that the titans were rising. Well, he wasn't actually scared of all the titans. Only one of them, Kronos.

Zeus rubbed his temple as he walked about in his palace. Kronos redefined the meaning of power. He alone could take on the entire Olympian council and win. Such was the Titan Lord's power. They had managed to defeat him last time only because it was a surprise attack. It also didn't hurt that Rhea dealt a lot of damage to him beforehand.

A beautiful woman appeared on the spiralling staircase leading to the higher floors of the palace. Today, she wore a classic Greek chiton, silky white. Her luscious brown hair tumbled over her shoulders. This was Hera, Queen of the Gods.

"Zeus, Father is going to return. All of us need to fight together. ALL of us."

The bearded god snapped. "ENOUGH! If that fool won't fight with us, then he's against us!"

The goddess sighed. "When will you let it go? It has been nearly forty thousand years!"

"Never! He dared to stand against me! ME! Now let him suffer. He can die alone for all I care!"

Hera vanished from the spot and reappeared in front of the Zeus, giving him a godly sized slap.

The god was so shocked that he didn't even bother to retaliate.

Hera looked angry. Her eyebrows knitted in anger. "How can you say such things about your own brother?! Did he not fight with us to defeat Father? We have to reach out to him."

Zeus remained stubborn.

"Both of you are the same. Speak to me when you manage to remove that bolt up your ass."

The windows in the palace shattered to pieces and the furniture exploded as Hera violently teleported away.

Zeus held his jaw. "Everyone seems to be going crazy. Ask Perseus's help? She must be mad!"

* * *

( _The Heart of Tartarus_ )

Down in the deepest pits of Hell, where even the bravest men would piss themselves, stood a castle. Black as night were it's walls and gleaming towers stood at it's corners. Inside the castle, there were gardens of black flowers and big trees with golden leaves and silver branches.

A man was watering the gardens and trees using a black pitcher. But when he turned, half of his face was burnt to the bone. A demon. They were creatures, evil, twisted souls who were tortured beyond measure and then turned into the perfect soldiers. Loyal, and undying.

The throne room of the castle was extraordinary. There was one throne at the far end which was bigger than the rest. The King's throne. Skulls and sculptures of death decorated the area. But that particular throne was empty.

The other thrones were occupied, and it's inhabitants were restless. They'd been waiting for days now, sitting there.

"Where is he?!" One demon snapped.

As if on cue, harsh black energy filled the room and when it subsided, the king was sitting on his throne, wearing a two piece suit with a bottle of whiskey in his hand. He leaned back and took a swig. When nobody spoke, he started. "Oi! Don't worry. This isn't mortal stuff. I just got this from dear old Dionysus. Best nectar you can get."

He sighed. The bottle of whiskey disappeared. "All right. What is it? What was so important that all of you had to assemble?"

The demons looked at each other.

"Well? Go on then!"

The demon sitting at the front slowly rose. "Lord Perseus, w-we think t-that the prisoner might have escaped."

Perseus raised an eyebrow. "Prisoner? You've got to specify who, _Emperor_ Nero. You could be talking about any of the three hundred million souls here."

Another demon stood up. This one's unburnt side of the face had a short thick moustache. Just like Hitler. "Ser. I think it vas ze leader of ze titans."

Immediately, Perseus's demeanour changed. He suddenly appeared in front of the demon, grabbing his collar. "You think?!". He threw the demon across the courtyard.

He rubbed his head. Not good news. Kronos could wreak untold amounts of havoc. Then, he addressed the council. "Kronos could not have gotten far in his weakened state. Find him and bring him back."

Nobody moved.

A pitch black sword appeared in his hand. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE AND FIND THAT FUCKING TITAN! OR I'LL FLAY YOU ALIVE RIGHT HERE!"

The effect was instantaneous. All of them disappeared from the area.

He sighed and sat on his throne. "Shit."


	2. Of Espionage And Kidnappings

_Previously on Morningstar,_

 _Nobody moved._

 _A pitch black sword appeared in his hand. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE AND FIND THAT FUCKING TITAN! OR I'LL FLAY YOU ALIVE RIGHT HERE!"_

 _The effect was instantaneous. All of them disappeared from the area._

 _He sighed and sat on his throne. "Shit."_

* * *

 **01 - OF ESPIONAGE AND KIDNAPPINGS**

* * *

( _Tartarus_ )

Hell was in quite a buzz on this day. Monsters and demons alike were summoned to the Capital. The Palace of Perseus.

A crowd had gathered outside.

"AAAAHHHH!" A monster screamed as a whip with razor sharp spikes met it's back.

A female demon held the whip, cracking it across the monster's back. Behind, there was an unbelievably long line of monsters and demons.

Ten feet away, the Lord of Hell sat on a wooden chair with his chest leaning on the backrest. His arms were under his chin and he looked bored. "Next!" He commanded.

The demoness kicked the monster aside and brought the next one in line and shoved it to the ground. It was an empousa.

Perseus smiled. "Kelli! How are you?"

He got off the chair and walked towards her. Everyone in a ten metre radius cleared the area, leaving only the empousa.

Kelli the empousa got down on all fours, begging.

Before the monster could do anything, a black boot shoved her face into the painful terrain of Tartarus. The monster could feel the glass piercing her face, but she couldn't do anything. After what seemed like forever, Perseus let her breathe, removing his foot.

"Kelli ... you wouldn't happen to know about a prison break would you?"

The monster's eyes were wide open. "N-No my lord."

Perseus's face turned sour, his teeth clenching in anger. "I see. Who else was with you? Who masterminded this?"

"N-No one m-my lord. O-Only m-me."

For a brief moment there was silence. The god took a step back. Almost immediately, his foot shot like a rocket, smashing the monster's face.

The empousa felt several teeth crack, black blood flowing. Two of them flew out of her mouth. Her jaw felt like it would fall off any second.

"I thought you were far too stupid to concoct such a plan. But I know you're not lying. You managed to have Kronos escape without me even knowing. That too, keeping all this under wraps for almost half a year. I'm actually impressed."

The demoness holding the whip had a funny look on her face as she turned to Perseus. "Huh?"

The god continued. "So, I'm not going to have you burnt by Hellfire like I previously intended. No. Kronos used you to escape. Without my knowledge. You will go to the earthly plane and you will join Kronos. But you report to me. Is that understood?"

The empousa nodded. It was the best offer she could get. Better than being burnt by Hellfire for eternity. Certainly better.

The god smiled. "Good. Now, before you go, remember one thing. I can snap my fingers and you will appear in front of me. I know everything you're doing. My eye is on you. If you try to even signal any of your friends who've allied themselves to Kronos ... well then ... ". His right hand erupted into flames. Hellfire to be exact.

The empousa gulped. "Y-Yessss my lord. I understand. I will be your sssspy."

* * *

Hours later, Perseus could be found inside his palace. He held a phone, playing a game on it. Every once in a while, weapon slashes could be heard. "Shadowfight. What a game!"

The same demoness who was whipping the monsters approached him. "My Lord, what do we do about the Castle's defences? Now that your fath-"

Perseus looked at her sharply.

"I mean, now that _Kronos_ is free, the other titans living in Tartarus will look to the Castle for it's resources and the armies you control. Not to mention the Doors of-"

"No need Maze. They wouldn't dare."

The demoness frowned. "But-"

"They'll be too busy with monster recruitment. And don't forget the castle's position. Our turrets can severely injure even the strongest of creatures, be it dragons or drakons. And the titans would be the most idiotic of immortals if they were to attack me in my home, where I am strongest."

The demoness wasn't convinced, but she didn't press him any further.

"But, " Percy continued, "We still need to go after him in the mortal realm whilst keeping our forces stationed here in case of an attack. I want all but four the council members here. The rest will take their respective legions and scour the earth for Kronos. Can you handle that, Maze?"

The demoness nodded.

"Good. Now let me see how my business is going!"

In a flash of flames, he was gone from the area, leaving the room hotter than before,.

* * *

( _Central Park_ )

The goddess of the moon wasn't having a particular good day as of the moment. The prey she had been chasing wasn't even something she had fathomed. She truly had imagined that her 'special' assignment would be to capture and/or kill a very powerful monster.

But that was most certainly not the case. In the beginning of the hunt, she didn't even know what she was looking for. So for a few moments, she just sat at the edge of a river and dipped her toes in it. But that's when she saw it.

A creature like no other. A cow serpent. The Ophiotaurus.

Of course, after that it made perfect sense to her. She hadn't ever actually seen the Ophiotaurus till then because of one reason. She wasn't there. She wasn't even born at the time when the titans had killed the Ophiotaurus and were about to sacrifice it's entrails into a fire.

She had heard the story many times, how Zeus in the form of an eagle had swooped down and grabbed into out of the titan's hands before it could be sacrificed, saving the Olympians and changing the tide of the war.

So naturally, she talked to it. Although, looking back on it, she should've been a little softer in her words. Now because of her, the damned beast kept teleporting through water bodies everywhere, and Artemis followed it wherever it went.

Now, she was in Central Park. A few dozen yards away, the Ophiotaurus was swimming happily in a freshwater lake.

Surprisingly for her, a random figure just appeared in front of her. Immediately her knife was out, but before she could act, a sharp pain hit her neck and she collapsed like a rag doll.

* * *

( _Los Angeles_ )

Los Angeles. Or, The City of Angels.

Obviously ironic since the ruler of Hell lived there.

Dozens of millennia ago, the Olympians had turned on him, forcing him to rule Tartarus. He didn't have much of a choice when the titans were dumped there. Someone had to make sure they didn't escape. So he stayed.

Obviously, he didn't sit there twenty four seven. In fact, one could argue that Perseus was the one who visited earth more than any other god. Exceptions are Hermes and Iris. Poseidon too, since his domain is in the earthly plane.

Zeus came down only for the chicks. Ask him who the current president is, and he'll ask you what a president is.

All right, that last part was a bit of an exaggeration.

So Perseus decided to have his own ventures. A business.

Now, he could just snap his fingers and make money, but where would the fun be in that. He felt that earning it was more ... satisfying.

For millennia he had done this. Bill Gates you say? Not even remotely close. Perseus was there before the concept of business even existed. You could call him the pseudo god of commerce.

He appeared in front of his office/home. There was a big 'Ω' symbol which decorated the building. Over the years, as industries became a thing, Perseus decided to start his own from his already well known and famous businesses. Omega Industries©, a multi-trillion dollar company which Perseus owned.

He walked up to the receptionist, who was busy in her computer.

He cleared his throat.

"Name?", the receptionist lazily asked.

Of course he couldn't just tell people his name was Perseus! They'd be like, 'What about the last name?!'. So he kept a more modern name, to fit in with the times.

"Jackson. Percy Jackson."

Everyone in the lobby stopped what they were doing and stood straight. The receptionist nearly fell off her chair trying to get up. "I'm so sorry sir!". She quickly swiped her card and the glass doors on the far end opened up.

Sighing, 'Percy' walked inside. The lift took him to the topmost floor, where of course, his office was.

As soon as he entered the room, a green light shined around the room. When it was done, a female voice came out of the speakers. "Welcome home, Lord Perseus."

The room was astounding though. Truly a dream for rich people. Carpets covered the floor and exquisite paintings adorned the wall. And not those shit piles sold in modern art galleries, but real paintings. The windows gave a real nice view of the Los Angeles night life.

A row of guitars hung on the walls, ranging from acoustic to electric to bass guitars. A speaker system was set up and three ninety inch displays were opposite to his office table.

Grabbing a remote, he opened the security feed of several cameras he had bugged at several places in California and a couple of them in New York itself. These were constant hotspots of hostile monster activity and the monsters in these areas were sometimes in open rebellion against Olympus. If anyone knew where Kronos was, it would be them.

The videos played on the ninety inch displays. Even then they sucked.

Let me tell you one thing. Looking through these tapes might seem cool on 'CSI' shows, but it was a pain in the ass in real life. The god groaned as he watched the hour long tapes. Thankfully he had his godly super speed which enabled him to watch it in fast-forward mode, but even then it was mind numbingly boring.

Now wait a minute! Didn't Percy already send Kelli to be a spy? Then wouldn't she already know Kronos's whereabouts?

No.

Kelli helped him escape. Doesn't mean she knows where he is. Kronos isn't an idiot. Percy knew that only Hyperion and maybe Iapetus or Krios would know where the Titan Lord would be. At this weakened state Kronos is not going to risk it by telling every monster his location. Some might report it to Zeus, or worse, to Perseus.

So yes, he had to manually search for the damned titan and his friends.

Eventually though, his attention was caught by something. It wasn't a titan though. It was in the woods of Central Park. A flash of silver caught his eye. _Artemis_. Both his eyebrows raised when the goddess was surprised by a demigod, losing her concentration. She suddenly fell down flat on her face.

Percy paused the video. He zoomed in.

Now, I know what you're thinking. 'How can he zoom in when CCTVs have crappy quality?'. Well, they're not regular CCTVs. Made by Hephaestus. Excellent pixel ratio.

On her neck, there was a small dart. _Poison_.

He switched off the screens.

A part of him wondered what the hell Artemis was doing without her hunters. It wasn't like the goddess to go alone.

But then, maybe, just maybe the gods had already noticed Kronos's arrival on Earth. And maybe they had decided to act. Not that Percy cared anyway. They could all fade away for all he cared.

* * *

( _Camp Half-Blood, The Big House_ )

Chiron was about to sleep in his wheelchair form when a golden flash lit up the room.

"Lady Athena?"

The goddess didn't say much. She merely sat down on the recliner. "Artemis is missing."

Athena wasn't known for beating around the bush, so this came as a sudden shock to the centaur. "What?!"

"Apollo is going completely crazy looking for her. The other gods are unsettled. Who would dare kidnap a goddess in her own domain?"

The centaur was at a loss for words.

"You must try and find out. The rest of the gods are also doing all they can. Send a quest if you have to. See if the Oracle is going to be any good. But don't send those moronic, self-sacrificing hunters beforehand. They'll only get themselves killed."

KNOCK! KNOCK!

The door was banged repeatedly. Athena frowned. "Zoe? You better answer that, Chiron. I'll be on my way now."

Before Chiron could open the door, it burst open with a THUD!

Standing there was Zoe Nightshade with an extremely worried and panicked expression on her face. "Chiron! Milady's bee-"

"I know, child. I know."

Zoe frowned. "You do?"

"Yes. Athena came here not too long ago. We will see what the Oracle has to say tomorrow. Until then, nobody is allowed to step foot out of Camp Half-Blood."

"But-"

"No. I cannot allow anyone else to get hurt. What can you do if your mistress was captured by the same beings?"

Ouch. Harsh, but Chiron was right. They had to wait till the Oracle gave a prophecy, or else they would be running in blind.

Chiron's face softened. "I'm sorry Zoe, but I'm afraid I don't have a choice. I have orders."

.

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* * *

 **So, how is the new version? Like it? Hate it? Pls review. It helps me a lot to find my mistakes and to correct them for future chapters.**

 **By the way, this chapter might feel rushed, but it's because these events are happening almost consecutively.**


	3. MIA

_Previously on Morningstar,_

 _"No. I cannot allow anyone else to get hurt. What can you do if your mistress was captured by the same beings?"_

 _Ouch. Harsh, but Chiron was right. They had to wait till the Oracle gave a prophecy, or else they would be running in blind._

 _Chiron's face softened. "I'm sorry Zoe, but I'm afraid I don't have a choice. I have orders."_

* * *

 **02 MIA**

* * *

( _Camp Half-Blood_ )

The next day at Camp Half-Blood wasn't a very joyous occasion for the hunters.

It all started with a mission.

 **†…FLASHBACK…† (Two days ago)**

 _It was a regular day for the hunters. They hunted down the monsters hiding in the forests and a few of them even in the urban areas._

 _The hunters started to set up camp in a clearing in the forest. Zoe Nightshade, the lieutenant of Artemis sat with her lady around the central campfire. The fire seemed to change colour based on the goddess's mood. And the campfire was a greyish colour, which seemed unnatural for the fire._

 _Zoe had also noticed that Artemis was quiet. A bit too quiet._

 _"Milady?" she asked._

 _The goddess didn't reply in words, but merely hummed, letting her lieutenant know that she was allowed to speak._

 _"What is the matter milady?"_

 _The goddess sighed and stood. "Zeus has given me a task. First we must go and rescue some demigods. Luke Castellan and Annabeth Chase._

 _The third in command, Phoebe, gave an obnoxious huff. "Why should we rescue them?"_

 _Zoe looked at the girl sharply._

 _"I-I meant that they can handle it right? What ever it is."_

 _Artemis didn't look at her. "No. They cannot. There seems to be a lot of monsters surrounding the area. I suspect they will be ambushed soon, in a few hours."_

 _Zoe's eyes widened. "Then we must go milady!"_

 _Artemis smiled. "Yes … Tell the girls to pack up. We leave in ten minutes."_

 _(THREE HOURS LATER)_

 _The hunters moved with astonishing speed. Within a few hours they crossed more than six hundred miles to reach Bar Harbor, Maine. On foot. Do the math yourself._

 _But this kind of travel exhausted them a lot. Running for hours at nearly two hundred miles an hour isn't exactly easy._

 _But they had at least reached on time. Their intel was wrong. It wasn't just Luke and Annabeth. Thalia Grace was there too, along with Grover Underwood, a satyr. They also noticed two children standing at the side. Artemis frowned. Who were these?_

 _At first, Zoe dismissed them as_ _civilians getting caught in the crossfire but then she noticed the monsters going after them exclusively. The satyr was playing his reed pipes and every once in a while some plant would save the children._

 _She looked at Artemis. "Milady?"_

 _The goddess gave a go ahead._

 _Zoe looked at her sisters. "Concentrate at the monsters."_

 _"FIRE AT WILL!"_

 _Arrows flew. The Manticore, who called himself Dr. Thorn, suddenly turned around. His tail threw spikes just in time for them to repel the arrows. He threw one at Zoe, but the huntress easily dodged it._

 _"You can't!" The Manticore cried. "It's not fair! It's against the rules!"_

 _Artemis, who had been sitting on a branch, free fell and landed on her feet. "Not so. I didn't do anything."_

 _She was playing with a silver knife, which circled around her fingers._

 _"Kill it." She muttered._

 _In it's distraction, it failed to notice one blonde haired demigoddess surprise it. Annabeth's bronze dagger embedded deep into it's back and as the Manticore shook violently she hung on._

 _The hunters lowered their bows._

 _Artemis clenched her teeth. "Oh for Zeus's sake!"_

 _A bow materialised in her left hand and within milliseconds, arrows were knocked and fired. Some were dodged by the monster while others found their mark. Unfortunately, that was a godly symbol of power. The sheer force of the arrows blasted the monster off the cliff with Annabeth still hanging on her back._

 _Immediately Artemis dashed to the edge, but there was nothing in sight. She growled in anger. The damned monster had a teleportation device. It could be anywhere in the whole world by now._

 _"Zoe. Set up camp."_

 _The goddess heard a cry of anguish. She turned and saw the male demigod flat on his stomach, with his palm outstretched towards the ocean. "ANNABETH!" He cried._

 _Artemis sighed. "Zoe. We camp here tonight. But first, see to that everyone is healed."_

 _The huntress looked at the demigods disdainfully. Something that didn't go unnoticed by Artemis._ _"Everyone, Zoe."_

 _Zoe opened her mouth to protest, but a sharp look kept her quiet. "Yes, Milady._

 _The goddess suddenly disappeared and in the distance, a tent popped into existence. Something told Zoe that this wasn't the actual mission. Why in the world would Artemis of all gods, be eager to save demigods?_

 _(THE NEXT DAY)_

 _The next day everyone had gotten up early, but the goddess was already up and waiting._

 _Not something surprising though. The bed in Artemis's tent was just a formality. It wasn't as if she ever spent any amount of time on it._

 _The goddess was in her usual attire, with her bow strapped to her back and a quiver slung across it. The sun hadn't risen fully yet, but small rays of light were finding their way to the earth._

 _The hunters had all assembled beside the goddess. Luke, Thalia and Grover stood a little to the side, with Luke restraining Thalia lightly. The demigoddess didn't take kindly to her best friend nearly being shot to death by a goddess of archery._

 _Grover ... tried to control his urges around the hunters._

 _Suddenly the goddess looked at all of them. "Shut your eyes. Now."_

 _As soon as they did, bright light illuminated the area, scorching the tress around them and vaporizing the snow. The stone below them seemed to melt as it started to glow red hot._

 _But Nico hadn't closed his eyes. It was glorious. He saw blinding light at first, but he could make out something materializing into existence. He gasped loudly. "THE SUN CHARIOT!"_

 _When the heat subsided, everyone except Artemis found themselves drenched in sweat. Their faces red and in some cases, blistering a little. Luke's eyes widened upon seeing the car. Already his mind was racing with thoughts on hot-wiring it and stealing it._

 _A seventeen year old Apollo got out of the car and looked straight at Luke. "Don't even think about it."_

 _Artemis frowned slightly at her brother. "You could've toned down the heat a little. And what took you so long?"_

 _The sun god sighed. "I was more than a hundred light years away from this planet. You called suddenly. Two stars were going to collide with each other, cause a black hole. That would really be a pain in the ass."_

 _Artemis's eyes widened. "Y-You what? You do know that father has forbidden the control of celestial objects right? That's why the sun is now fixed in the centre and earth is the one revolving around. What were you thinking you idiot?!"_

 _The demigods and hunters were staring open mouthed at the two bickering gods. Thalia leaned close to one of the hunters. "Does she also ... move stars?"_

 _Another hunter was very confused. "I thought the sun was a chariot?"_

 _Apollo sighed. "Never mind. What is it, sister?"_

 _"I need you to take the girls to Camp Half-Blood."_

 _Zoe protested again, but she quickly shut up when her mistress's eyes glowed silver._

 _Apollo nodded. "Yeah alright, what about them?". He pointed at the campers._

 _"Oh right, them too."_

 _Apollo snorted. "Yeah don't act like you forgot about them. What, you thought I'd leave them here? Who do you think I am? Our uncle?"_

 _Artemis rolled her eyes. "Just get them there safely."_

 _With that, the goddess started to walk away._

 _The sun god smiled at the hunters, making some of them uncomfortable._

 _"Brother if you touch them I'll feed you your own balls!"_

 _Apollo grimaced. "Right, let's get on with it, before any more mortals get cancer by celestial radiation. Who wants to drive?"_

* * *

 _After two demigods had already gotten killed before for driving the sun chariot, you'd think that Apollo would've learned by now. And yet, he gave the reins of the most powerful car to Thalia Grace._

 _In hindsight, Thalia driving didn't seem so bad, what with her being the daughter of Zeus and all, but Apollo h"ad completely overlooked the fact that she was afraid of heights_

 _So far, she was actually doing good._

 _Nico was confused. He could see the earth below, and yet, if he looked the other way, the sun shone a brilliant gold, nothing like the yellow he was used to._

 _Apollo could sense his confusion. "It's not true, you know?"_

 _Nico frowned. "Huh?"_

 _"The sun chariot isn't actually the sun. It's a common misconception that even some gods have. Think of this chariot as a vehicle as a radiation filter. It's to prevent mortals from dying from cancer."_

 _Nico frowned. "What about the ozone layer?"_

 _Apollo laughed a little. "It's more complicated than that. Do you know why stars are actually called celestial objects?"_

 _Nico shook his head._

 _"It's because they literally emit huge amounts of celestial energy. I'm talking about the same kind that gods emit when we assume our true forms. Now, you do know what happens when look at the true form of a god, right?"_

 _Nico tried to remember what he saw. "Uh, nothing?"_

 _Apollo rolled his eyes. "You disintegrate into pure atomic energy, that's what happens. But since the sun is so far away, it just gives you deadly cancer. My job is to pilot this chariot and intercept the sun rays coming to earth. The sun rays will be absorbed by the chariot and the chariot will, in turn, let regular light pass through. In a sense, the chariot is the sun, since the light you see comes from here, but it isn't really a star. Got any of it?"_

 _The demigod had fallen asleep on the seat. Apollo frowned. "Really, kid?"_

 _The sun god sighed and was about to open his phone, when suddenly the chariot dipped downward. The hunters and campers piled on each other as the chariot became vertical. Apollo looked out and could see mortals passing out on the street below._

 _"Thalia, don't look out of the window. Focus!"_

 _Apollo sighed. Screw it. He snapped his fingers and suddenly he was in the driver's seat and the demigoddess was in the backseat, trying to hold the steering wheel, but her hand was empty, holding nothing._

 _Apollo pushed the red button and suddenly the chariot righted itself and they glided towards the camp. Right above the lake, the bottom of the chariot disappeared and everyone save Apollo were dumped into the lake. Without a word, the chariot disappeared._

 **†…FLASHBACK END…†**

That was all of it.

Now? The campers and the hunters were getting prepared for their annual capture the flag game against each other.

* * *

( _New York City_ )

Perseus had to admit one thing. Kronos could really cover his tracks well. All searches led to no avail. He couldn't find his father anywhere. And the last time he had heard, the legions of demons who were searching for him had no clue either.

Which led him here. Here being New York.

Ever since he had started hunting Kronos down, he felt an energy signature coming from New York.

Now that could easily be explained. Olympus was above New York. Certainly there would be a lot of godly beings in the area. However, this one didn't feel like the energy signature of a god. It was harsher and more crude. More simple. Determining the energy signature of a god from afar is difficult, gods are better versions of titans. They have a wider array of powers, hence their energy signatures are more similar. Untraceable.

Titans, however, leave behind patterns that are easy to track. Kronos would emit an energy signature which disrupts the space-time continuum, with him being the titan of time and all. Hyperion's mere presence would make the entire region brighter, so he wouldn't be difficult to find.

So the real reason Perseus was here in New York, was because somehow, a mammoth was stumbling around in Central Park. No, I mean, a literal woolly mammoth in the twenty first century.

Perseus frowned. He distinctly remembered that timeline manipulation was strictly forbidden by the Fates.

He walked to the mammoth which was running around and terrorizing the mortals. He inspected it. "Hmm. Almost eight thousand years back huh? ... Alright."

He waved his hand and a blue portal appeared behind the mammoth, pulling it inside.

The mortals around him looked at him in fear. He closed his eyes and erased their memories of the past few hours. A woolly mammoth wasn't exactly a supernatural creature. The Mist wouldn't cover it.

In front of him, he could sense the energy. It was coming from a tree. He walked up to it and stuck his hand inside and grabbed the energy source and punched it twice, obviously thinking it was Kronos.

It was ... a glowing ball of light.

Perseus frowned. "What the? What the hell are you?"

A harsh voice came from the glowing sphere. " **Hello, son.** "

Perseus's eyes narrowed. "Kronos. Well played. You led me to Central Park by cutting a piece of yourself and placing it here. Well done. I assume there are many more pieces around the world?"

" **That is for me to know, and you to find out.** "

The god's hand tightened, threatening to crush the sphere. "You do know I will find you, don't you. We both know that it's going to take a while before you reach your full power and if I find you before that ... then you get to stay in my palace as my honored prisoner.

The voice chuckled darkly. " **Ah yes, I forgot. The Olympians have forsaken you. Your own brother cast you into Tartarus. And yet you side with them.** "

Perseus smiled darkly. "Oh, don't you worry. Right after I get you, I'll get Zeus too. I might even let both of you share a cell."

With that, he crushed the ball into golden dust, sending it back to Tartarus.

Feeling a little gleeful, he was about to take a step forward when suddenly, time slowed around him. I mean, literally slowed. It didn't affect him at all, but all the mortals around him moved at a snail's pace and the rain fell at about two centimetres in a second. His eyes rolled up to his eyebrows as he tried to control his exasperation. "Bloody Hell!"

He turned around to see a young, blonde woman with grey eyes in her thirties standing next to a man who was in his late thirties. The man was built like a linebacker and wore a biker gang's uniform. The woman was in a pencil skirt with a gray blouse on top.

He looked at both of them. "Long time no see, Athena. What are you doing with him?". He nodded towards Ares.

But the goddess merely narrowed her eyes at him. "Zeus demands your presence."

Perseus's demeanor changed, his face darkening. "If Zeus wants to speak with me, he can come here himself."

Ares stepped forward, a bronze knife in his hand. "This wasn't a request."

Perseus looked at both of them and eyed the knife. "Now, let's not do something you'll regret."

The god's right hand ignited, coating his palm with hellfire.

Ares gulped. "W-We only meant that-"

Athena looked at his ignited palm fearfully, but she kept up her act. "Peace, uncle. Father only wishes to speak. This isn't a trap. I swear it on the Styx."

Perseus glared at both of them. "Fine."

He closed his fist, snuffing out the flames. "I'll come. But if any of you try anything, then _I_ swear on the Styx that I'll drag you both to Hell and flay you alive. Savvy?"

Athena nodded. "A-Alright. We have a deal then."

Perseus smiled. "Oh yes, we do."

* * *

( _Camp Half-Blood_ )

Nico lifted his sword with effort. "Do we get to kill the other team?"

"Well… no."

"But the Hunters are immortal, right?"

"That's only if they don't fall in battle. Besides—"

"It would be awesome if we just, like, resurrected as soon as we were killed, like Call of Duty, so we could keep fighting, and—"

"Nico, these aren't steel swords. These can kill us for good."

He stared at Luke, a little disappointed, and he realized that Nico was just being over enthusiastic.

He patted Nico on the shoulder. "Hey, it's cool. Just follow the team. Stay out of Zoe's way. We'll have a blast."

Chiron's hoof thundered on the pavilion floor.

"Heroes!" he called. "You know the rules! The creek is the boundary line. Blue team—Camp Half-Blood—shall take the west woods. Hunters of Artemis—red team—shall take the east woods. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. No intentional maiming, please! All magic items are allowed. To your positions!"

"Sweet," Nico whispered next to Luke. "What kind of magic items? Do I get one?"

Luke was about to break it to him that he didn't, when Thalia said, "Blue team! Follow me!"

They cheered and followed. Luke handed Nico over to the defense and rushed forward, blade in hand.

They set their flag at the top of Zeus's Fist. A cluster of boulders in the middle of the west woods that, if you look at it just the right way, looks like a huge fist sticking out of the ground. If you look at it from any other side, it looks like a pile of enormous shit, but Chiron wouldn't let anyone call the place the Shit Pile, especially after it had been named for Zeus, who doesn't have much of a sense of humor.

"We'll send out a decoy to the left," Thalia told the team. "Silena, you lead that."

"Got it!"

Silena looked at Luke expectantly.

He snapped out of his reverie and looked at the group in front of him.

"Take Laurel and Jason. They're good runners. Make a wide arc around the Hunters, attract as many as you can. Thalia and I'll take the main raiding party around to the right and catch them by surprise."

Luke charged alongside Thalia, using their distraction to go behind the group of hunters and swarm them, attacking them suddenly. The hunters, though, had a strategy. Slowly, they separated the two of them and engaged each of them on multiple fronts.

Thalia had several cuts on her body from the arrows but she still went strong. The hunters made sure to dart around her quickly and keep away from her spear, which zapped any hunter who came close enough. Thalia could've summoned lightning from above, but that would cause two problems. One, was kind of against the rules, since it could kill some hunters. Two, she might hit Luke by accident.

Luke had near legendary skill with a sword, decimating the hunters left, right and centre, trying to reach their flag.

A hunter came up behind him, but the demigod whirled around and whacked her in the face with the flat side of the blade, knocking her out. He ducked as a volley of steel arrows came at him. One hit him in the shoulder, causing a shallow cut.

But soon, even he was overwhelmed. Zoe Nightshade, who was watching the whole fight, suddenly dashed forward and speed-blitzed him, leaving him stunned and on the ground. The huntress was soon out of sight and near the other side of the forest. Near Zeus's Fist.

Before Luke could do anything, he felt a sharp sting. A shock and he passed out.

A hunter stood above him, bow in hand. "Electric arrows. Highly useful."

When Luke came to consciousness, he was near the dining pavilion, with Thalia beside him. He was about to speak when he gasped loudly.

Someone… something was approaching. It was shrouded in a murky green mist, but as it got closer, the campers and Hunters gasped.

"This is impossible," Chiron said. He never sounded so nervous. "It… she has never left the attic. Never."

And yet, the withered mummy that held the Oracle shuffled forward until she stood in the center of the group. Mist curled around everyone's feet, turning the snow a sickly shade of green.

Nobody dared to move. Then her voice hissed inside everyone's mind and several clutched their hands over the ears.

" **I am the spirit of Delphi** " ,the voice said. " **Speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python.** "

The Oracle regarded Luke with its cold, dead eyes. Then she turned unmistakably toward Zoe Nightshade. " **Approach, Seeker, and ask.** "

Zoe swallowed. "What must I do to help my goddess?"

The Oracle's mouth opened, and green mist poured out. Luke saw the vague image of a mountain, and a girl standing at the barren peak. It was Artemis, but she was wrapped in chains, fettered to the rocks. She was kneeling, her hands raised as if to fend off an attacker, and it looked like she was in pain. The Oracle spoke:

 **Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,**

 **One shall be lost in the land without rain,**

 **The bane of Olympus shows the trail,**

 **Campers and Hunters combined prevail,**

 **The Titan's curse must one withstand,**

 **And one shall perish by a parent's hand.**

Then, as they were watching, the mist swirled and retreated like a great green serpent into the mummy's mouth. The Oracle sat down on a rock and became as still as she'd been in the attic, as if she might sit by this creek for a hundred years.

Luke's eyes were wide open. "Holy Shit!"

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* * *

 **Hey guys, I'm really sorry for not updating for an unbelievable amount of time. The truth is that my laptop had a breakdown and I had to wait till I got back home to write this chapter on my PC.**

 **Please do review and tell me your opinions.**


	4. The Quintessence

_Previously on Morningstar,_

 _The Oracle's mouth opened, and green mist poured out. Luke saw the vague image of a mountain, and a girl standing at the barren peak. It was Artemis, but she was wrapped in chains, fettered to the rocks. She was kneeling, her hands raised as if to fend off an attacker, and it looked like she was in pain. The Oracle spoke:_

 _ **Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,**_

 _ **One shall be lost in the land without rain,**_

 _ **The bane of Olympus shows the trail,**_

 _ **Campers and Hunters combined prevail,**_

 _ **The Titan's curse must one withstand,**_

 _ **And one shall perish by a parent's hand.**_

 _Then, as they were watching, the mist swirled and retreated like a great green serpent into the mummy's mouth. The Oracle sat down on a rock and became as still as she'd been in the attic, as if she might sit by this creek for a hundred years._

 _Luke's eyes were wide open. "Holy Shit!"_

* * *

( _Olympus_ )

The streets of Olympus were bustling with activity. There were rumors. Disturbing rumors. Most of the residents of Olympus had no clue that the goddess Artemis was actually missing. So when the rumors started to surface, the whole city was panicking.

Artemis was one of the twelve most powerful gods, and if someone had managed to capture her ... then that isn't very good news for Olympus is it?

No rumour can start without a speck of truth to it. In this case, the entire thing was true. Artemis was captured by the titans.

The Eternal City, Olympus was beautiful during both day and night. A bright flash of gold filled the courtyard of the Palace of the Olympians and three beings emerged from it. Upon seeing them, every immortal present lowered their heads in both respect and fear. Some even going so far as to kneel.

A young god looked to his mother and pointed at Perseus. "Mom, who's that man?"

The goddess stood in front of her son protectively. "Nobody."

Perseus sighed wistfully as he stared at the beautiful structures in The Eternal City. It had been a very long time since he had been up here, and he noticed much had changed. Gone were the marble columns at every turn. They were replaced by actual urban areas. Complete with shopping complexes and theatres.

The population had increased too. Perseus reckoned that there were at least a hundred thousand beings living on Olympus at least, which is a staggering number.

Soon though, they reached the throne room. Perseus entered and looked straight in the direction of Zeus's throne, ... which was empty.

A voice resounded from behind him. "I'm so sorry uncle. I lied. Now give us Artemis back and we won't put you in a cell."

Perseus smiled for a bit. Mostly laughing at himself. He wondered how he could still be so naive. To think that his brother actually wanted to make peace with him? He should have known better. Why would Zeus call him now when he didn't hesitate in blaming him for his missing bolt?

Perseus turned around. Ares and Athena both had their weapons out and pointed at him. Apollo and Hercules were both standing in the throne room already.

Perseus looked at them. "I can't give her to you."

Apollo's eyes blazed. "You will!"

Perseus chuckled. "I can't give her to you because I'm not the one who's taken her."

The Lord of Tartarus glared at Apollo. "And you. If you had half a brain, you would realize who took her."

Apollo lowered his bow. "You ... didn't kidnap her?"

Perseus's glare softened slightly. "No. I didn't kidnap Artemis. But as for these two, ", he looked at Ares and Athena. "They broke their oath. They didn't hold up their end of the bargain. So I'll be taking them. You can tell your father that he can come and collect his offspring at any time."

He snapped his fingers and black chains erupted from the ground, locking them onto Ares' and Athena's necks. Both gods.

Apollo's eyes widened. "NO! Uncle, we made a mistake! We know it's not you now! Just let them go!"

Perseus chuckled. "Apollo, even if I wanted to let them go, which I don't, I did make an oath on the Styx."

Hercules roared and charged Perseus. The latter merely flicked his finger, sending the minor god crashing through a marble column before falling into a vendor's ambrosia store outside the palace.

Perseus snapped his fingers and black smoke enveloped him and his new prisoners.

Desperately, Apollo fired a volley of arrows into the smoke, but they emerged onto the other side.

"DAMN IT!" Apollo yelled as the smoke cleared, and Perseus was nowhere to be seen. So was Athena and Ares.

* * *

( _Tartarus, Palace of Perseus_ )

"AAAAHHHH!"

A scream rang out through the palace, shaking the foundations of the structure.

Over a vat of boiling bubbling liquid, a figure was tied up. If one looked upon this figure, they would've never guessed this was Ares, the god of war.

The god was completely unrecognizable. His skin was non-existent, having been completely peeled off.

Perseus walked in on the situation. "Enough. Heal him and unchain him."

The two demons who were grinning ear to ear pouted. "But-"

"No buts. That's enough."

Reluctantly, they emptied the vat of acid and lowered the god onto the ground. Two vials of liquid were placed beside him and the chains which bound his hands disappeared.

The god shivered as he tried to take the vials, his whole body trembling in pain. But he managed. After he drank them, Perseus cleared his throat.

"Alright, maybe now you'd be willing to answer some questions."

The war god shamelessly nodded.

"Good. My first question to you. Almost eighteen months ago, you hid Zeus's dildo with you. Why?"

Ares scrunched his eyes. "What?!"

The elder god rolled his eyes. "His Master Bolt you idiot! You hid it with you, along with Hades's party hat. Then Zeus thought Poseidon and I took his bolt, Hades too thought Poseidon took his helm and everyone thought I took both items. That situation was a real pain in the ass you know. But that isn't what I found odd. You knew very well that sooner or later we all would find out. Which means you were only distracting all of us from something. And recently it has come to my attention that the something is Kronos. While you and that other demigod made us run around in circles, Kronos escaped his prison, which makes you directly responsible for his escape ... unless you were manipulated by him. Admit one thing or the other."

There was no hesitation in Ares's voice. He begged Perseus to release him. He admitted the entirety of the truth. He told him how Kronos entered his mind and took over it. Well, some of the details Perseus knew was far-fetched, but ultimately, he believed him. Ares was many things, a douchebag and dickhead too, but he wasn't a traitor.

Athena sat and watched in horror as the war god broke down. Next to her, a duplicate image of Perseus appeared.

"You must be wondering why I flayed him in the first place right? Styx oaths hold no sway over us anyway."

The wisdom goddess's eyes widened, a little startled. "Yes?"

"Well, it's because Kronos still had tethers onto him. I could feel the titan's presence on him even on Olympus. This must've happened years back. The tethers must've grown stronger and stronger over the months. And if I had forcefully ripped out Kronos's presence from Ares, it would have caused a lot of damage to his mind. Think of this torture like distilling a mixture. To remove the impurity, first we need to-"

"Heat it until the impurity is left behind." Athena finished, her eyes wide. "You weren't torturing him, you were trying to remove Kronos's influence from his mind. Father was trying to do this for many months now."

"It's also why I didn't do anything to you. You are here simply as a witness. Something I'll very much need when your father loses his mind. I imagine he won't be too pleased when he learns of this. Perhaps you can show him the truth."

Hours later, the war god was on his feet. He blinked continuously. For some reason, he felt different. He felt a little empty.

"That feeling is normal. A parasite usually forms a strong bond with it's host, and now that the parasite is gone, you feel something's missing."

Ares growled. "What did you do to me?!"

"Calm down brother, he's actually done you a favour."

"A favour?! You tortured me for hours!"

The elder god scoffed. "Please. That's nothing for a god. You and I both know you could've and would've endured way more than that. After all, you are an Olympian, are you not?"

Athena cleared her throat. "Besides, he managed to remove Kronos's influence from you."

The war god was about to retort but he stopped. The lack of constant laughing in his head, the emptiness, the temporary void he felt inside him. "Fine. But I wasn't jesting the other time. Zeus really does want to see you."

Perseus shook his head. "Tell your father to meet me in V. There is no way I'm going smack in the middle of his domain after all this."

Athena frowned. "V? Where's that?"

Perseus chuckled. "Oh don't worry. He'll understand."

* * *

( _The Void_ )

The Void. An endless space which exists outside of the universe. A place where no matter exists. Unless you conjure up something. Here, nobody gets an advantage due to their domain. A perfect meeting place for the most powerful gods in existence.

Perseus sat on a simple recliner which floated endlessly in the void.

Minutes later, the blackness of the void turned bright gold and it shone with brilliance. Once it stopped, three figures emerged from it.

The first wore a pinstripe suit. This god had electric blue eyes which shone brightly compared to the blackness of the void. In his hand was a lightning bolt which sparked every now and then. This was Zeus, King of the Gods.

The second being wore nothing but khaki shorts and a Hawaii t-shirt. In his hand was a trident. A shining silver trident. The prongs were sharper than a razor and a greenish-blue aura surrounded it. This was Poseidon, Lord of the Seas.

The third being was dressed in shadowy robes. His eyes were pitch black and in his hand was a helmet. The most terrifying one, which even made Perseus shit himself. This was Hades, Lord of the Underworld.

Perseus stood, or floated rather, towards them. "Welcome to the quintessence. This is our third meeting, I believe."

Poseidon rolled his eyes. "I still don't understand why you call this a quintessence when there's only four of us."

"Details aren't important. But please, let's all take a seat, and keep your weapons in the centre."

Zeus nodded and snapped his fingers. Four thrones appeared and arranged themselves in a circle. In the centre, there was a table. The four gods kept their symbols of power on the table and took their respective seats.

"Alright, who wants to go first?"

* * *

( _Olympus_ )

"Where do you think Zeus went?"

"Dunno, ask him yourself once he gets here." Apollo replied to Hermes, while eating from a packet of chips.

The messenger god frowned. "Stop making those crunchy sounds. It's irritating."

A low thud was heard and the gods looked behind to see Athena on one knee, as if she'd jumped from somewhere. "This is the second time something like this has happened. I don't know for sure, but I think father is hiding something. Poseidon isn't in Atlantis, or anywhere on the planet and neither is Hades.

Hermes laughed. "So what, you think the four of them are having a little chat somewhere off the planet? Don't be daft, sister. They'd rip each other to shreds before that happens."

Athena glared at Hermes. "It has happened. Have you forgotten or what? The four of them on a freaking free for all? They randomly attacked each other, each his own side. The dinosaurs were wiped out and half the earth was vaporised. Now, we have a moon and the Pacific ocean thanks to them."

Apollo shuddered, remembering the incident. It was utterly devastating. Olympus too was destroyed, killing a good number of minor gods who tried to get in their way. It was the first time the Olympians saw the true power of the eldest gods. Contrary to popular belief, the battle was really short.

Hermes popped up next to them. "You know, I actually got some of it on tape right now."

Athena's eyes widened . "WHAT?! Where?!"

Hermes stepped back. "Whoa! Chill. It's here."

Athena grabbed it and put it in a DVD player she had conjured up. "I've been wanting to see this for millennia. Hundreds of millennia!"

RECORDING

3 ...

2 ...

1 ...

The camera first was fixed from outside the planet, which looked very different back then. There wasn't that much water and most of the planet was land.

The camera zoomed in onto two figures fighting. The timer on the bottom left corner showed the seconds moving very slowly, which meant the video was slowed down.

Athena gasped, seeing her father and Perseus throwing each other through mountains.

Another shot showed Poseidon and Hades doing the same.

The next bit was hazy, and all you could see was one god holding another by the neck and smashing him into the ground so hard that the very land mass they stood on split into seven distinct continents. A lot of rock which was thrown around eventually floated off into space, which Athena presumed would collide with other big asteroids and form the moon.

RECORDING END

Apollo stood there dumbstruck. "Wha?"

Athena wondered how the earth was still in a circular shape after all this.

Hermes shuddered again. "Remind me not to get on Perseus's bad side. That last bit was him, you know?"

Athena's eyes widened. "What?! He was the one we so idiotically tried to capture just yesterday?!"

"Yes. Hopefully you've learned your mistake. Now hand that tape here!"

The three Olympians froze and slowly turned around to see Zeus and Perseus. "Oh shit!"

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* * *

 **Sorry for the late post. Pls review. And contrary to what you may think, I actually have not made the elder gods(sons of Kronos) more powerful. Zeus bitch slapped the Argo II so hard that it reached Camp Half-Blood in seconds. It only makes sense that the others should be somewhat comparable. But yes, Zeus is slightly stronger than Percy in this.**


	5. Council Meetings

**To the 'Guest' who told me to fuck myself,**

 **Please understand that this story is _fictional_. You are one dumbfuck of a reader who has posted a review without even thinking. Firstly, Hunters of Artemis are partially immortal, blessed by Artemis. Is it so hard to believe they can run at extremely high speeds? We know that a regular hunter of Artemis is stronger, faster and more skilled than the average demigod. Add that to the fact that they were running in a _forest,_ which is Artemis's domain. Wouldn't they get a power boost? Please understand that they are partially-immortal beings in a fictitious universe before you tell me to go and fuck myself.**

 **As for Apollo travelling a hundred light years ... are you fucking stupid or never heard of teleportation? Even then, even the books say that wind gods can stop someone from teleporting onto Olympus just because they're that fast. Why the hell will Apollo not be faster? He's an Olympian! What the literal fuck is wrong with you? Don't try and lecture me about science in a PJO fanfiction.**

* * *

 **For everyone else, a few facts:**

 **Demigods and Hunters of Artemis are stronger and faster than in the books. Not by a large margin, but yes. Also, lesser demigods can get hit by mortal weapons, but it won't affect them as much as a Celestial Bronze weapon. Demigods like Thalia will have bullets bouncing off them.**

 **Every god is still at his/her prime. No such shit like lack of worship in this story.**

 **'The Void' does NOT exist outside of space and time. It is outside the universe but is like a pocket dimension. Time flows differently there, but time exists there.**

 **Zeus is the strongest. Next is Perseus and Poseidon, who are more or less equal, and Hades is the weakest, but only because of his shitty weapon.**

 **P.S - I know this wasn't the update you guys wanted, and I know it isn't a good chapter. Sorry for that. I'll try improve the chapter quality as I continue updating.**

* * *

 _Previously on Morningstar,_

 _Athena wondered how the earth was still in a circular shape after all this._

 _Hermes shuddered again. "Remind me not to get on Perseus's bad side. That last bit was him, you know?"_

 _Athena's eyes widened. "What?! He was the one we so idiotically tried to capture just yesterday?!"_

 _"Yes. Hopefully you've learned your mistake. Now hand that tape here!"_

 _The three Olympians froze and slowly turned around to see Zeus and Perseus. "Oh shit!"_

* * *

 **03 - COUNCIL MEETINGS  
**

* * *

( _Olympus_ )

Perseus stood there, glaring at them as he grabbed the tape from them. He tried his best to forget the incident. It wasn't something they'd done on purpose. Well, not really.

I wouldn't say they were mind controlled, but more like they lost control. The four of them were so angry that they didn't give a shit about the casualties.

As the Olympians all gathered for an emergency meeting, which Perseus attended, he started to remember the fight.

 **†…FLASHBACK…† (Sixty Five Million Years Ago)**

 _Four beings stood apart from each other. Zeus, Poseidon, Hades and Perseus._

 _This wasn't a two on two fight. It was a free-for-all._

 _Without hesitating, Perseus charged at Zeus, an onyx blade gripped with both hands. The god of thunder did the same, only he held a lightning bolt. The air seemed to ripple as the two opponents flung themselves at each other._

 _The air seemed to ripple and distort as the gods charged at each other and they swing their weapons._

 _Perseus drew first blood. The god of thunder was quick to fire a lightning bolt at his opponent, who casually parried it away with his sword and continued, without losing momentum._

 _Zeus sidestepped in the nick of time as the black blade came crashing onto the ground. The god was thrown off balance as the ground shook a little. Taking the advantage, Perseus turned and roundhouse kicked the god in the chest, sending him in a horizontal path straight into Hades._

 _Zeus and Hades both disappeared from view. Poseidon, with whom Hades was fighting, turned and attacked the nearest opponent. Perseus. Before Perseus could react, the sea god grabbed him by the neck, ran and smashed him through the nearest object, which happened to be a mountain._

 _While Perseus was briefly out of the fight, Poseidon was smashed from behind with the most ginormous lightning bolt, one that shattered the earth's crust, causing a crater that was at least a kilometre wide._

 _As Zeus grinned, seeing the fallen form of the sea god, he didn't notice Hades sneak behind him and whack him out of the country._

 _By this time, Perseus had gotten back in. He grabbed the nearest person available, which happened to be Hades, and flew. Yes. He can fly. All gods can._

 _The god took Hades all the way to the nearest mountain and dropped him. Before Hades could think why Perseus let him go, he saw a shadow on the ground. He looked up. "Oh sh-". He didn't even finish his sentence before the massive mountain dropped on him._

 _Perseus felt an odd sensation near his temple and immediately dashed to the side, not caring if he smashed himself against a mountain. And good thing too. A beam of energy had grazed him, making the smallest amounts of ichor trickle from his shoulder. A flesh wound, but still._

 _The rest of the battle was a haze. Something which wasn't normal. Gods never forget something. The memory of such an incident just doesn't fade away. It's why most gods hold grudges for so long. An insult can carry over for thousands of years._

 _Poseidon and Hades were somewhere at the bottom of the ocean, where Hades was being absolutely wrecked. The sea god's power exponentially increased and Hades could do nothing but shamelessly take the beating._

 _Neither of them noticed the creatures. Before Zeus could react, Perseus disappeared and appeared behind him, grabbing him by the throat and flying straight down. The god lost control completely, not knowing how hard he hit, or how fast he flew._

 _As Perseus reared his fist back, Zeus teleported away, making the god hit the ground with full force, making several distinct cracks as the land mass slowly separated._

 **†…FLASHBACK END…†**

"-RSEUS! PERSEUS!"

A shout broke him out of his reverie. "Huh? What?"

Zeus glared at him. "You weren't listening."

Perseus rolled his eyes. "An acute observation, brother."

The sky god gritted his teeth, sparks, flying from his fingers. "Listen well, Perseus. I said, you cannot interfere!"

"In what?"

"The demigod quest. It starts today. Well, it has started." Hermes stated.

"And? You think I'll interfere? Why?"

Poseidon pretended to clear his throat. "Well, you see, we think that father might be there."

"I see." Perseus tightened his fist. "So you mean to tell me that you have Kronos's location, but you won't tell me?"

"I told you he'd jump to conclusions." Zeus muttered to his wife.

"No, brother. We don't know where Kronos hides. We only know that he has escaped. And that he has Artemis." Poseidon replied.

"Fine. In that case, let the demigods do their work. They've always been good at finding things. Just like your dildo." Perseus replied, directing the last statement towards Zeus.

"Huh?! How dare y-"

"Calm down brother." Poseidon said. Then he looked at Perseus. "And you, what's wrong with you? You've been irritating him since today morning. Are you trying to start a fight?"

Ares piqued up. "A fight? Where?!"

Athena rolled here eyes. "Nowhere. Why don't you continue staring dumbly at that slut of yours?"

A loud gasp was heard as the goddess of love glared at Athena. "You're the SLUT!"

Soon enough, the room was filled with chaos, like it always had, during every single council meeting. Poseidon looked at Perseus, who was grinning. "Stop it!"

Perseus sighed. "Fine, fine."

He snapped his fingers and suddenly the gods felt lighter. They stopped fighting.

Zeus frowned. "Wait a minute! So every time ... you're going to pay for this you little shit!"

Before the sky god could do anything, Perseus and his temporary throne were gone.

A paper floated down and landed on Poseidon's lap. It was a drawing of what looked like Zeus, except that ... well ... it's probably best if the details were unknown. Let's just say that Zeus would hunt him down and flay him if he ever saw it.

* * *

( _Tartarus, Palace of Perseus_ )

A black portal appeared in the middle of Perseus's throne room. Moments later, said god stepped out of the portal, flexing his fingers.

He took out his phone, switching on the WiFi, and frowned when there were no available networks. He tapped his foot on the ground, causing an echo throughout the palace. Within moments, a demon appeared in the hallway.

"My Lord, you summoned me?"

Perseus nodded. "Yes. Why is the WiFi not working?"

The demon stuttered. "Well, you see-"

"No. I don't see. Tell me quickly or die."

The demon gulped. "The council members shut it down. They said spies could hack the fortress's weaponry and defences."

Perseus sighed. "Alright. Go."

The demon turned to go, but Perseus suddenly ordered him to stop. The god seemed to ponder something for a while and then looked at the demon in the eye. "I'm feeling generous. Take today off. You're allowed to take your companions with you to earth. Enjoy, drink human blood, whatever you want. But demigods and their relatives are off limits. Understand?"

The demon nodded happily, before dashing out of the throne room.

Perseus chuckled. Demons and these other so called 'monsters' never changed.

He sat on his throne, sighing. Hopefully, the demigods would find Kronos's hideout soon enough. Speaking of which, he almost forgot to send someone.

"Mazikeen!". He shouted.

A sudden appearance of dark smoke indicated the demoness's arrival. " _Yes, my lord._ "

Perseus frowned. "Stop that ethereal rubbish and solidify yourself."

The god swore the demoness pouted before the smoke became denser before it solidified and became his faithful second in command.

"Send someone to shadow the quest leaving Camp Half-Blood. I want to know the demigod's every move. And call back our armies. We shall wait until the demigods have fulfilled the quest and then we'll attack wherever Kronos is hiding. Sound good?"

The demoness nodded. "What about you, my lord?"

Perseus scratched his chin. "I ... don't know. Maybe I'll go visit the Lotus Hotel & Casino. After that, well, I have a board meeting on earth."

The demoness hesitated before asking. "My Lord, is it necessary? This Omega Industries. Why do you need to earn mortal money? It's just paper isn't it?"

Perseus laughed. "Is that what you think? I'm not doing it for money, Maze. Hermes and I run that company for only one reason."

"That is?"

"For fun!"

The demoness knew he was lying, but she didn't say anything. She merely bowed respectfully and vanished from the throne room.

The god whistled a tune as he stretched his legs. The smallest of portals opened beside him. Said portal seemed to lead to an office. His office. Perseus then opened his phone, pleased to see that his office's WiFi reached till Hell. Although it was because of the portal.

He frowned, looking at the screen. It seems, that in the past three months, the communication, energy minerals and transportation sectors had hit losses in the stock markets. Omega Industries had a good amount of money in communication. Not good. However, electronic technology and technology services had a substantial percentage increase, so there was that at least.

His eyebrows raised as he stared at the stocks. He whistled loudly. "Wow.". Nasdaq had a two hundred point increase within the last two days. That was more than three percent than the previous and it also meant thirty percent more than last year. He couldn't help but smile devilishly. Business is booming!

He was about to keep his phone inside his pocket, when a PING! came from it. A message. From Apollo.

' _Zeus is really mad. He saw your drawing. Besides that, I need your help. Could you meet me above Camp Half-Blood?_ '

Perseus frowned. Above? Vague.

Perseus generally didn't refuse to offer help. But Apollo only yesterday had tried to attack him. Tried to ambush him in the throne room of the gods. In the throne room, no less.

He sighed. "Why not?"

He knew the reason Apollo was asking his help. Artemis. His sister was missing. And if the sun god was anything like Perseus knew, then he wasn't going to sit on the sidelines and wait for some demigods to find her. No, he was going to rush after her and try to find her himself.

A bright light engulfed the throne room of the palace and Perseus was gone.

He reappeared over the dome-like border of Camp Half-Blood, seeing the sun god out of his element. It was night time, and Apollo floated over the border, staring wistfully at the moon above. The moon looked big, Perseus noted. Bigger than it was supposed to be.

"It's falling, isn't it?", Perseus asked. But it was more of a statement, not a question.

"Yeah.", Apollo muttered. "Without Artemis and her chariot, it's going to impact with the planet."

Perseus sighed, staring at the moon. It didn't look like it was moving, but he knew it was slowly nearing Earth. "Can any of you stop it? Or slow it down?"

"No.", Apollo said, sounding sad. "Only Arty can do it. It's her domain after all."

Perseus stared at the approaching moon. "Well. Another reason to hope those demigods do succeed in their quest. Where are they?", he asked.

Apollo frowned, thinking. "I … don't know right now. Sun's not facing this part of the planet now, so I can't see them."

Perseus put a finger to his head. "Where are they?", he seemed to listen to something, then he turned to the sun god.

They're at some café about sixty miles from D.C.", Perseus told Apollo.

The sun god was taken aback. "Wha? How do you know that?"

Perseus smirked. "Trade secret."

The two gods were about to continue further, when they noticed something odd. Two of the hunters were creeping towards the Big House. One of them was a girl of sixteen with coppery skin and black hair, and the other was younger. Twelve. She was pale and had the blackest eyes. Both had their weapons on.

"Hang on a minute.", Apollo said. "What are they doing?"

Perseus too frowned. He stared at the two girls, but something else caught his eye. Since he was floating so high above, the bird eye view of the camp allowed him to see something he normally wouldn't have. A stalker.

"Hey look.", Perseus prodded to Apollo.

The sun god frowned. "That's … that kid from earlier. Nico I think. He's a newbie. I brought him to the camp only yesterday I think. What's he doing there?"

Perseus shrugged. "Not a clue … but wait a minute. I feel something else."

"What?", Apollo asked. "I don't see anything else."

Perseus didn't answer him immediately. He closed his eyes for a minute. He saw three people out of their cabins, but unmistakably he felt four distinct presences.

When his eyes snapped open, they were glowing red, and his head swivelled around as his vision scoured the entire camp, before firmly stopping at a neat little spot in the bushes, right behind Nico di Angelo.

Perseus's eyes narrowed. "He's invisible. Behind that kid."

Apollo frowned, before he too stared at the spot for a moment. His eyes glowed gold for a second. "That's Hermes's kid. Luke."

"Luke? … Wasn't that the one who found Zeus's dildo?"

Apollo stared upwards with a solemn expression, as if he expected a bolt of lightning to come down at that moment. "Uncle, if you wanna die that's fine, but please don't drag me into this!"

Perseus laughed. "Don't be daft. You think I'll come here without setting up a soundproof shield around us?"

Apollo frowned. "When did you do that? I didn't notice."

Perseus smiled. This smile unnerved the sun god, who laughed nervously. "R-Right. About why I called you in the first place, I wanted to ask you for help. To find Artemis. I mean, Zeus forbade anyone else to search, … but you aren't on the council … so?"

Perseus stared at the sun god. "No.", he said simply.

Apollo looked taken aback. "No?! Why?!"

"Because, I don't feel like it."

Apollo's eyes narrowed. "You! Curse you! She's your niece!"

Perseus simply stared at him without any emotion. "And Kronos is my father. Yet I hunt him down like he's a dog. Familial bonds is nothing for immortals, or have you forgotten that, Phoebus Apollo?"

Apollo stared hard at the god before him. "You can't. You can't! You _need_ to help me!"

Perseus shrugged. "And why is that? If the demigods succeed, they'll find her. And Kronos. Then I'll drag Kronos back to Hell. It's a win-win situation as I see it."

Apollo's anger rose. Dashing forward, he grabbed the Lord of Hell by his collar. "My sister, ", he hissed, "is out there in the hands of titans, and yet you will do nothing?!"

Perseus looked at the sun god, unimpressed. With a flick of his hand, he removed Apollo's wrist from his collar, and shoved him back, before straightening out his shirt. "Don't presume to try that again, nephew. Next time, I'll skin you alive over a vat of boiling acid."

Apollo shivered at the thought. Ares was still shaken by the incident, and wouldn't talk to anyone. Zeus was just being Zeus, telling the council that if Ares couldn't handle such a minor thing, then maybe he shouldn't even be on the council.

"As for your _accusations_ , I am doing something, Apollo. I've assigned someone to watch over the questers. They will notify me frequently, and I'll be watching."

The sun god opened his mouth to say something, but Perseus cut him off. "But I cannot and will not waste my time helping you get punished by Zeus."

At Apollo's sad face, Perseus softened, if but a little. "My generals are scouring the planet, looking for Kronos. I'll tell them to keep an eye out for Artemis, alright?"

Apollo beamed, rushing towards his uncle. "Thank you, Uncle!"

Perseus's face turned into a sour expression. "If you hug me I'll make you fade."

The sun god backed off. "Alright, no touching."

After Apollo left, Perseus stayed there, watching as one Luke Castellan sneaked out of the borders, following a certain white van. "Now where might you be going", he mused, before floating off and following him.


End file.
